Chevrolet Volt Research

The Car Connection Chevrolet Volt Overview

The Chevrolet Volt is a unique vehicle: it's the only range-extended electric car sold in high volumes in the world. It functions in a few different ways: at first it operates as electric car off battery power—from 35 to 53 miles, depending on model year—and then switches into a hybrid mode where a gasoline engine and its electric motors jointly power the car, rather like a Toyota Prius.

The BMW i3 can run on the same general principle, though it balances battery and gas-engine power differently, and is sold in much smaller numbers.

The extended-range concept has proven to be a tough one to market, but the Volt has delivered a whole crop of new owners who would never have considered a Chevy before. The smooth, quiet, and brisk driving experience attracts buyers from expensive German imports, because this is the first Chevy in decades to be at the cutting edge of future technology. It's also the GM car with the highest-ever owner satisfaction ratings in the history of the brand.

Changes for 2018 are limited mostly to a few new paint colors and the deletion of a formerly standard leather-wrapped steering wheel on LT models.

The new Chevrolet Volt

The latest version of Chevy's extended-range electric vehicle retains all of the Volt's strongest attributes while fixing most of the shortcomings of the previous model. Not only does it have that 53-mile electric range, but also its EPA fuel-efficiency rating when the engine switches on is 42 mpg combined. It's slightly less expensive than the previous Volt, though its starting price before incentives is still more than $30,000.

The styling may be the biggest departure from the outgoing model, with smoothed-over, flowing lines taking the place of the somewhat slab-sided and crisp design of the original. The overall Volt silhouette stays relatively similar, ensuring continued aerodynamic slipperiness that's needed to achieve big fuel-economy numbers, although with the softer curves the drag-reducing rear slope is much better integrated and even attractive now.

The second-generation Volt uses an 18.4-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack that gives a stellar EPA rating of 53 miles of electric range, about one-third more than the 38-mile rating for 2013-2015 Volts. That range will let Volt owners cover nine of every 10 trips solely on grid power, Chevy says, up from about 80 percent previously.

Its range-extending engine is a 1.5-liter 4-cylinder model from GM's latest global family of 3- and 4-cylinder engines. It delivers 101 horsepower at 5,600 rpm, and runs on regular (87-octane) gasoline. After the Volt's battery pack has been depleted, the engine generates electricity by turning one of the two motor-generators to flow electricity to the battery pack. Total output from the two motors is 111 kilowatts (149 hp) and a remarkable 294 lb-ft of torque. An 8.9-gallon fuel tank and the larger battery give a rated range of 430 miles, substantially higher than the last Volt's 340 or so miles.

The blending of electric motors and gas engine has been optimized around GM research that says 80 percent of cars in the U.S. travel less than 40 miles a day. If you use the Volt that way and recharge it overnight, you may go weeks without the engine ever switching on. But if you need to take a road trip, you can do so without the fear of running out of juice. Volt owners who recharge regularly average almost 1,000 miles between visits to the gas station, which happen less than once a month.

Mounted under the load floor of every second-generation Chevrolet Volt is a charging adapter that connects the car to a standard 120-volt home outlet. Using this charging method, the battery takes between seven and 10 hours to top up a depleted battery. Level 2 charging is also available at public sites and can be installed in a user's garage or parking spot at home or work, with costs usually no higher than $2,000; this method cuts charging time to around four hours.

For 2017, the Volt added optional adaptive cruise control and automatic emergency braking to its roster of features.

Chevy Volt history

The first Volt was new for the 2011 model year, and took home several major awards, including the North American Car of the Year award.

The first-generation Chevrolet Volt didn't change much over its five years, though its lithium-ion battery saw two small increases in capacity. Other than some trim changes, and the roof and tailgate now painted in body color rather than glossy black, the last Gen 1 Volt was pretty similar to the 2011 model that launched GM into the business of selling electric cars in volume.

When the first Volt started out with a fully charged battery, it could travel an EPA-rated 38 miles on electricity alone; once the battery was nearly exhausted, the gasoline-powered generator kicked in to recharge it, extending the driving range for another 300 miles or more. After that, occasional stops at a gas pump could extend the range even farther. The Volt's 38 miles of electric range was delivered by a lithium-ion battery pack located in the tunnel between the front seats and below the two rear seats. After the pack was depleted, the car seamlessly switched on its 1.4-liter gasoline engine, which generated electricity to power the electric motor that actually drove the front wheels. Those fundamentals haven't really changed in the second-generation Volt.

Over time Chevy's specs for the first Volt inched ahead. In 2013, Chevy slightly increased the energy capacity of the lithium-ion battery pack, from the original 16 kilowatt-hours to 16.5 kwh, and the usable portion of that energy from 10.3 to 10.8 kwh. That boosted the Volt's EPA-rated electric range from 35 to 38 miles, and it raised the 2013 Volt's efficiency rating from 94 to 98 MPGe, or "miles per gallon equivalent"—the distance the car can travel electrically on the amount of energy contained in a single gallon of gasoline. For 2015, the battery capacity rose again—though this time the ratings stayed the same.

The EPA assigned the first Volt a rating of 98 MPGe over a standard test cycle that blends both pure electric and range-extending gasoline modes.

GM took criticism for the Volt's unadventurous exterior styling, but the interior was seen as more modern, with an Apple-like feel to its glossy plastic control panel. Packaging in the first Volt was another area of concern for some: The Volt's lithium-ion battery pack sits in the tunnel between the seats and under the rear seat. The first Volt could hold four people and some luggage comfortably, but had less interior space than Chevy's similarly-sized Cruze compact four-door sedan.

The options list of the Volt gradually expanded over the years, although 2011 models came with a richer selection of standard equipment than did the 2012s. No sunroof was offered, and there were limited color and wheel options. A low-energy Bose audio system was available, along with a navigation system, leather upholstery, and a selection of interior graphic treatments and finishes.

Great mileage - quiet ride. has some potentially fatal flaws

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The car is exactly what an electric car should be. It has the emergency backup gas engine so I am never nervous. It handles like a sports car. Very reliable so far. It is my second volt. There are two fatal...
The car is exactly what an electric car should be. It has the emergency backup gas engine so I am never nervous. It handles like a sports car. Very reliable so far. It is my second volt.
There are two fatal flaws that would prevent me from buying this again.
1. There is no adaptive cruise control. I was told by the sales person that it had "all the safety options available". Turns out this was incorrect. It did not have adaptive cruise control which is a major safety feature.
2. The radio does not have audible announcements for delays or accidents. Even with the XM navigation package it does not announce all the delays and stoppages. You have to keep looking at the screen to see them listed. This is a potentially fatal flaw as the driver is distracted.
3. The lane keep assist only works at 35 mph or greater.
4. The automatic braking system will not actually stop the car if the car in front of me stops suddenly.

If I could return the car I would and get another brand just because of these safety deficiencies.
If Chevrolet fixes these for me I would be glad to retract my comments but for the moment this car is a "never again" for me. + More »

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December 13, 2016

2017 Chevrolet Volt 5-Door HB Premier

Fantastic car!

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We picked up our new Volt a week ago and it is beautiful. Very sharp inside and out. Drives beautifully. Haven't used any gas yet. I love all the safety features like blind spot Warning, rear cross traffic...
We picked up our new Volt a week ago and it is beautiful. Very sharp inside and out. Drives beautifully. Haven't used any gas yet. I love all the safety features like blind spot Warning, rear cross traffic alert and the parking sensors. I wish it had a power driver's seat and a sunroof. But it is a gorgeous looking and feeling vehicle. I'm very happy with it. We wanted a compact car and this is a good size in that category. + More »

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September 1, 2016

2017 Chevrolet Volt 5-Door HB Premier

Volt is good in many ways

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The 2017 Volt is a very good car. It goes about 50 miles on batteries only, then the gas engine turns on and drives the electric motors. It is very quiet, both in battery mode and in gas backup mode. So far it...
The 2017 Volt is a very good car.
It goes about 50 miles on batteries only, then the gas engine turns on and drives the electric motors.
It is very quiet, both in battery mode and in gas backup mode.
So far it has not encountered any problems that required repair. + More »